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Biotechnology Heritage Award

The Biotechnology Heritage Award honors extraordinary individuals whose work in biotechnology is helping to heal, fuel, and feed the world through discovery, innovation, commercialization, or public understanding.

First bestowed in 1999, the award is given annually during the BIO International Convention. The Science History Institute is proud to present this award alongside the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), which represents more than 1,200 biotech companies, academic institutions, state biotechnology centers, and related organizations across the United States and in more than 30 other nations.

The Biotechnology Heritage Award will be presented on June 16, 2025, during the BIO International Convention in Boston.

2025 Awardees: Leonard S. Schleifer and George D. Yancopoulos

portrait of Len Schleifer, wearing glasses, blue shirt
Len Schleifer.

Leonard S. Schleifer cofounded Regeneron in 1988 and serves as board cochair, president, and chief executive officer. Len, together with chief scientific officer George Yancopoulos, has built the company from a tiny startup into one of the world’s leading biotechnology companies with a unique science-driven culture. Regeneron’s ability to repeatedly and consistently translate science into medicine has led to numerous approved treatments and product candidates in development, most of which were homegrown in its laboratories, for a range of diseases, including cancer, vision-threatening eye diseases, asthma, and infectious diseases. 

Len has been recognized as a 2020 Businessperson of the Year by Fortune, one of Barron’s Best CEOs, a Yale School of Management Legend in Leadership and as EY Life Sciences Entrepreneur of the Year. Regeneron has been repeatedly voted a top company to work for in the biopharmaceutical industry by Science magazine, has been consistently ranked a most innovative company by Forbes, and has been recognized for its commitment to corporate responsibility through inclusion in the Civic 50 Most Community-Minded Companies in America, Dow Jones Sustainability World Index, and Forbes JUST 100, among others.

Len graduated Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude from Cornell University and earned his MD and PhD in pharmacology from the University of Virginia. He is a licensed physician, certified in neurology by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. In 2019 he was elected as a fellow by American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

studio portrait of George Yancopoulos with black shirt and folded arms
George Yancopoulos.

George Damis Yancopoulos is cofounder, cochair, president and chief scientific officer of Regeneron. He is widely recognized as one of the most successful entrepreneurs, scientists and inventors in biotech history. George has been ranked among the top 10 most-cited scientists globally and is one of the most productive drug developers, responsible for two of the best-selling drugs in the world. 

George built Regeneron—alongside longtime partner Leonard S. Schleifer—into a premier biotech company, based on an unprecedented record of bringing important new medicines all the way from discovery to patients. He is principal inventor of Regeneron’s numerous approved medicines and industry-leading technologies, including VelocImmune®, the world’s first antibody producing mouse with a fully humanized immune system. Regeneron is not only a leader in antibody and biologics medicines, but emerging as a world leader in human DNA sequencing, genetics-based medicines, and “Big Data” for healthcare analytics and management. 

George has been honored as one of America’s 100 Most Innovative Leaders by Forbes and Pandemic’s Greatest Heroes by Fortune. He is an elected member of the National Academy of Sciences and graduated as valedictorian of Bronx High School of Science and Columbia University, where he received his MD and PhD.

Winners of the Biotechnology Heritage Award

About the Sponsor

The Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) is the world’s largest trade association representing biotechnology companies, academic institutions, state biotechnology centers, and related organizations across the United States and in more than 30 other nations. BIO members are involved in the research and development of innovative healthcare, agricultural, industrial, and environmental biotechnology products. BIO also produces the BIO International Convention, the world’s largest gathering of the biotechnology industry, along with industry-leading investor and partnering meetings held around the world.

Herbert Boyer in 2005.

Herbert W. Boyer and Stanley N. Cohen

By inventing recombinant-DNA technology, Boyer and Cohen jump-started the biotechnology industry, including Genentech, which creates important applications for a wide range of medical uses.

Nancy Chang

Born in Taiwan, Chang made the long trip to the United States to study at Brown University and then Harvard. She became one of the world’s most successful biotechnology entrepreneurs.
John C. Martin holds up a bottle of pills.

Interview with John C. Martin

The former CEO of Gilead Sciences tells us about remdesivir, an older drug showing promise in the fight against COVID-19.

Robert S. Langer

A biochemical and biomedical engineer, Langer works at the cutting edge of research into biologically compatible synthetic materials.
Rosenkranz in a suit and tie, smiling

George Rosenkranz

An organic chemist and a pioneering steroid researcher, Rosenkranz was instrumental in developing one of the most world-changing pharmaceuticals in history: the oral contraceptive.

Phillip Sharp

The codiscovery of RNA splicing by Sharp and Richard Roberts opened up a new and important area of molecular biology.

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